Network of tags

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods are disclosed for communicating product or service information to a potential purchaser. A product or item describing a service are scanned to obtain both a product or service code and an advertisement promotion code provided by a vendor/retailer or manufacturer of the product or service using a smartphone of a first user. A barcode is generated on the smartphone by combining the product or service code and the advertisement promotion code with information from the smartphone associated with the product or service and with an advertiser code that uniquely identifies the first user. The barcode is communicated to a communication device of a second user that is the potential purchaser of the product or service. When the communication device is presented to a point of sale (POS) terminal, the terminal scans the barcode, decodes the barcode, and compensates the first user according to the advertisement promotion code.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/595,947, filed Aug. 27, 2012, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 12/125,998, filed May 23, 2008, now U.S.Pat. No. 8,558,668, which is a divisional of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/952,789, filed Sep. 30, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,388,488,which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.60/515,449, filed Oct. 30, 2003. All of the above mentioned applicationsare incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.

INTRODUCTION

The ubiquity and unique features of smartphones has made them usefulshopping devices. This is evidenced by the recent adoption of quickresponse (QR) codes on many goods and advertisements. When thesetwo-dimensional barcodes codes are scanned by the camera of asmartphone, they provide much more information than the universalproduct code (UPC) barcodes traditionally found on products and used bypoint of sale (POS) devices. A QR code, for example, can contain auniversal resource locator (URL) to additional information about theproduct or vendor of a product. As a result, when shopping with asmartphone, more information about a product or vendor can instantly beobtained by simply taking a photo of a QR code on the product.

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags also have the potential toimprove the retail shopping experience. Like QR codes, RFID tags canprovide more information about products and their vendors than iscurrently available. Unfortunately, the unique features of smartphoneshave not yet been coupled with the capabilities of RFID tags in order toimprove the retail shopping experience.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The skilled artisan will understand that the drawings, described below,are for illustration purposes only. The drawings are not intended tolimit the scope of the present teachings in any way.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram that illustrates a computer system, inaccordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a system for communicating productor service information to a potential purchaser and for identifying anadvertiser of a product or service, in accordance with variousembodiments.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a system for identifying andcompensating one or more advertisers of a product or service, inaccordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary flowchart showing a method for communicatingproduct or service information to a potential purchaser, in accordancewith various embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a system that includes one or moredistinct software modules that perform a method for communicatingproduct or service information to a potential purchaser, in accordancewith various embodiments.

Before one or more embodiments of the present teachings are described indetail, one skilled in the art will appreciate that the presentteachings are not limited in their application to the details ofconstruction, the arrangements of components, and the arrangement ofsteps set forth in the following detailed description or illustrated inthe drawings. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology andterminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should notbe regarded as limiting.

DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS Computer-Implemented System

FIG. 1 is a block diagram that illustrates a computer system 100, uponwhich embodiments of the present teachings may be implemented. Computersystem 100 includes a bus 102 or other communication mechanism forcommunicating information, and a processor 104 coupled with bus 102 forprocessing information. Computer system 100 also includes a memory 106,which can be a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storagedevice, coupled to bus 102 for storing instructions to be executed byprocessor 104. Memory 106 also may be used for storing temporaryvariables or other intermediate information during execution ofinstructions to be executed by processor 104. Computer system 100further includes a read only memory (ROM) 108 or other static storagedevice coupled to bus 102 for storing static information andinstructions for processor 104. A storage device 110, such as a magneticdisk or optical disk, is provided and coupled to bus 102 for storinginformation and instructions.

Computer system 100 may be coupled via bus 102 to a display 112, such asa cathode ray tube (CRT) or liquid crystal display (LCD), for displayinginformation to a computer user. An input device 114, includingalphanumeric and other keys, is coupled to bus 102 for communicatinginformation and command selections to processor 104. Another type ofuser input device is cursor control 116, such as a mouse, a trackball orcursor direction keys for communicating direction information andcommand selections to processor 104 and for controlling cursor movementon display 112. This input device typically has two degrees of freedomin two axes, a first axis (i.e., x) and a second axis (i.e., y), thatallows the device to specify positions in a plane.

A computer system 100 can perform the present teachings. Consistent withcertain implementations of the present teachings, results are providedby computer system 100 in response to processor 104 executing one ormore sequences of one or more instructions contained in memory 106. Suchinstructions may be read into memory 106 from another computer-readablemedium, such as storage device 110. Execution of the sequences ofinstructions contained in memory 106 causes processor 104 to perform theprocess described herein. Alternatively hard-wired circuitry may be usedin place of or in combination with software instructions to implementthe present teachings. Thus implementations of the present teachings arenot limited to any specific combination of hardware circuitry andsoftware.

The term “computer-readable medium” as used herein refers to any mediathat participates in providing instructions to processor 104 forexecution. Such a medium may take many forms, including but not limitedto, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media.Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical or magnetic disks,such as storage device 110. Volatile media includes dynamic memory, suchas memory 106. Transmission media includes coaxial cables, copper wire,and fiber optics, including the wires that comprise bus 102.

Common forms of computer-readable media include, for example, a floppydisk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, or any other magneticmedium, a CD-ROM, digital video disc (DVD), a Blu-ray Disc, any otheroptical medium, a thumb drive, a memory card, a RAM, PROM, and EPROM, aFLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other tangiblemedium from which a computer can read.

Various forms of computer readable media may be involved in carrying oneor more sequences of one or more instructions to processor 104 forexecution. For example, the instructions may initially be carried on themagnetic disk of a remote computer. The remote computer can load theinstructions into its dynamic memory and send the instructions over atelephone line using a modem. A modem local to computer system 100 canreceive the data on the telephone line and use an infra-red transmitterto convert the data to an infra-red signal. An infra-red detectorcoupled to bus 102 can receive the data carried in the infra-red signaland place the data on bus 102. Bus 102 carries the data to memory 106,from which processor 104 retrieves and executes the instructions. Theinstructions received by memory 106 may optionally be stored on storagedevice 110 either before or after execution by processor 104.

In accordance with various embodiments, instructions configured to beexecuted by a processor to perform a method are stored on acomputer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium can be a devicethat stores digital information. For example, a computer-readable mediumincludes a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) as is known in the artfor storing software. The computer-readable medium is accessed by aprocessor suitable for executing instructions configured to be executed.

The following descriptions of various implementations of the presentteachings have been presented for purposes of illustration anddescription. It is not exhaustive and does not limit the presentteachings to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variationsare possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired frompracticing of the present teachings. Additionally, the describedimplementation includes software but the present teachings may beimplemented as a combination of hardware and software or in hardwarealone. The present teachings may be implemented with bothobject-oriented and non-object-oriented programming systems.

Network of RFID Tags

As described above, radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags have longhad the potential to improve the retail shopping experience. Like quickresponse (QR) codes, RFID tags can provide more information aboutproducts and their vendors than is currently available. Unfortunately,the unique features of smartphones have not yet been coupled with thecapabilities of RFID tags or QR codes to improve the retail shoppingexperience.

Recently, near field communication (NFC) standards have been proposedfor smartphones. NFC is a set of standards for smartphones and similardevices to establish radio communication with each other by touchingthem together or bringing them into close proximity, for example, withina few centimeters. NFC technology enables contactless transactions, dataexchange, and simplified setup of more complex communications, such asWi-Fi. NFC technology makes life easier and more convenient forconsumers by making it simpler to make transactions, exchange digitalcontent, and connect electronic devices. These NFC standards, forexample, have been discussed and used to transform a smartphone into apayment device like a credit card. These NFC standards covercommunications protocols and data exchange formats, and can also be usedto communicate with RFID tags.

Embodiments of a method and system are disclosed for communicatingproduct or service information to a potential purchaser using, forexample, smartphones and RFID tags or quick response (QR) codes.Further, embodiments of a method and system are disclosed foridentifying an advertiser of a product or service using, for example,smartphones and RFID tags or QR codes. A smartphone is described hereinfor illustrative purposes. One skilled in the art will appreciate thatother types of electronic communication devices (hereinaftercommunication devices) that include a computer system, such as thesystem shown in FIG. 1, either mobile or non-mobile, can equally beused. In addition to smartphones, other types of communication devicescan include, but are not limited to, tablet computers, personal digitalassistants, music players, game players, or personal computers. QR codesare described herein for illustrative purposes. One skilled in the artwill appreciate other types of codes, such as barcodes, may equally beused.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a system 200 for communicatingproduct or service information to a potential purchaser and foridentifying an advertiser of a product or service, in accordance withvarious embodiments.

In various embodiments, a computer, such as a server, provides anadvertising system/service 280 to generate a product or service code 214and one or more advertisement promotion codes 216 for a product orservice. In various embodiments, a vendor/retailer 242 and/ormanufacturer 244 receives product or service code 214 and advertisementpromotion codes 216 from advertising system/service 280 through anetwork 220, for example, and places product or service code 214 andadvertisement promotion codes 216 on a RFID or a QR code (hereinafterRFID tag 206) on a product or an item describing a service 230(hereinafter product or service 230).

Product or service code 214 uniquely identifies product or service 230and includes or provides detailed information on product or service 230.Product or service code 214 is a UPC, for example. For example,information on a product can include, but is not limited to, price,manufacturer, date of manufacture, technical information, marketinginformation, vendor information, vendor return policies, technicalsupport phone numbers and/or websites, vendor price comparisons, orcomparable products comparisons.

One skilled in art will appreciate that product or service code 214 canbe placed on an item describing a service. For example, an RFID tag canbe attached to a menu or an entrance of a restaurant and may include aservice code that provides menu items of a restaurant, cost of the menuitems, food preparation information, nutrition information for each itemon the menu, reservation information, seating information, hours ofoperation, or directions to a restaurant.

Advertisement promotion codes 216 each provides a monetary incentive fora user or advertiser to communicate information about the product orservice. An advertisement promotion code 216 uniquely identifies anadvertisement promotion for product or service 230. For example, fromadvertisement promotion code 216, a vendor/retailer 242 or amanufacturer 244 can determine the particular advertising incentive theyplaced on product or service 230. Each product or service 230 can havemore than one advertising incentive or promotion. Therefore, anadvertisement promotion code 216 is used to determine the particularpromotion.

In various embodiments, advertising system/service 280 provides one ormore applications (or apps) that can be downloaded on a smartphone 202to read RFID tag 206 to access product or service code 214 andadvertisement promotion code 216. Note, as described above, smartphone202 can be any electronic communications device, including, for example.

In various embodiments, smartphone 202 with a camera, an NFC interface208, or radio frequency interface (not shown) can access moreinformation about product or service 230 (and other information), whensmartphone 202 is within proximity of product or service 230 thatincludes RFID tag 206.

In various embodiments, smartphone 202, carried by a smartphone user 260(also referred to as an advertiser), uses the application provided byadvertising system/service 280 to access product or service code 214 onRFID tag 206. As noted above, product or service code 214 includes orprovides this product or service information. Alternatively, product orservice code 214 may include one or more links, such as URL links, thatprovide this product or service information.

Information received by smartphone 202 from RFID tags 206 can be coupledwith information from smartphone 202, such as an advertiser code 212,the time product or service 230 was seen, the location of product orservice 230, and even a photo or digital image of product or service 230captured by an imaging device (not shown) of smartphone 202. Advertisercode 212 uniquely identifies a person who owns or carries smartphone 202and advertises product or service 230 to someone else. Advertiser code212 is used, for example, to determine the person who should be paid foradvertising product or service 230. Advertiser code 212 is registered byadvertising system/service 280, for example.

All of this information can then be stored on smartphone 202 or sharedwith others, including one or more potential purchasers 250 in the formof a digital code 210, through a network 220. Digital code 210 mayinclude a barcode or other types of code, for example. The network 220can be, for example, social networks or traditional communication means,such as email, voice, text, or chat. For example, smartphone 202 canreceive the price and product information on a particular laptop(product 230) from an RFID tag 206 on the laptop for sale at aparticular retailer 242. The product information can include, forexample, the specifications of the laptop, such as the speed of theprocessor, the disk storage capacity and speed, the size of the monitor,and the type and number of input/output ports. Smartphone 202 can couplethis information with the time the laptop was seen, the location of thelaptop, and a photo or digital image of the laptop take by thesmartphone 202. Smartphone 202 can also do an Internet search forlaptops with similar product specifications and can get a pricecomparison with other vendors. All of this information on the particularlaptop 230 can then be stored on smartphone 202 or a remote database(not shown), or shared with others, including one or more potentialpurchasers 250, using network 220. For example, this information can besent to a friend or posted on a social networking website.

As noted above, the RFID tag 206 associated with a product or servicecan include advertisement promotion code 216 that provides a monetaryincentive to communicate information about the product or service. Invarious embodiments, advertisement promotion code 216 may also provide acoupon (not shown) that can be used repeatedly by multiple users.Smartphone 202, for example, can then associate advertisement promotioncode 216 of the product or service with the unique code of smartphoneuser 260 (referred above in FIG. 2 as advertiser code 212), whointroduces the product or service to potential purchaser 250 byforwarding the product or service information. Advertisement promotioncode 216, product or service code 214, and advertiser code 212 may becombined as digital code 210 when communicated to potential purchaser250.

In various embodiments, when potential purchaser 250 (now a purchaser)presents digital code 210 to vendor/retailer 242 at the time ofpurchase, a point of sale (POS) terminal or device 240 scans and decodesdigital code 210 into product or service code 214 that identifies thespecific product or service, advertisement promotion code 216 thatidentifies the advertising promotion including the compensation foradvertising the product or service, and advertiser code 212 thatidentifies smartphone user 260 that forwarded the product or serviceinformation. One skilled in the art will appreciate that POS terminal ordevice 240 can be any computing device, mobile or non-mobile, that iscapable of scanning and decoding digital code 210 using, for example, anapplication provided by advertising system/service 280.

In various embodiments, potential purchaser 250 presents digital code210 at the time of purchase using a communications device 252, such as asmartphone, and an application (or app) provided by advertisingsystem/service 280, for example. For example, potential purchaser 250presents digital code 210 by displaying a code that can be scanned byPOS terminal or device 240, by sending the code through network 220 toPOS terminal or device 240, or sending a RF or NFC to POS terminal ordevice 240.

In various embodiments, advertisement promotion code 216 included withindigital code 210 specifies how smartphone user 260 is compensated forcommunicating product or service information to potential purchaser 250.For example, smartphone user 260 may be compensated by vendor/retailer242 and/or manufacturer 244 of the product or service by receiving acredit message or coupon 246. Alternatively, vendor/retailer 242 and/ormanufacturer 244 may store a credit for smartphone user 260 in aninternal database to be used by smartphone user 260 when making a futurepurchase from vendor/retailer 242 and/or manufacturer 244.Vendor/retailer 242 and/or manufacturer 244 may also send a message toadvertising system/service 280 instructing advertising system/service280 to store a credit or coupon for smartphone user 260. Smartphone user260 is identified on advertising system/service 280 using advertisercode 212, for example.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a system 300 for identifying andcompensating one or more advertisers of a product or service, inaccordance with various embodiments.

In various embodiments, two or more users who forward information onproduct or service 230 can be compensated using advertisingsystem/service 280. For example, smartphone user 260 forwards product orservice code 214 and the advertisement promotion code 216 provided onRFID tag 206 of product or service 230 to a smartphone 362 of a firstpotential purchaser 360. The forwarded information is associated withadvertiser code 212 of smartphone user 260. The first potentialpurchaser 360 may send the forwarded information (including product orservice code 214, advertisement promotion code 216, advertiser code 212of smartphone user 260) and another advertiser code 312 of firstpotential purchaser 360 to a smartphone 352 of a second potentialpurchaser 350 in the form of a digital code 310. When second potentialpurchaser 350 presents digital code 310 at the time of purchase, digitalcode 310 may be decoded into product or service code 214 that identifiesthe specific product or service, and advertiser code 212 of smartphoneuser 260 and advertiser code 312 of first potential purchaser 360.Smartphone user 260 and first potential purchaser 360 may each receive acredit message or coupon 246 and 346, respectively, from vendor/retailer242 and/or manufacturer 244 of the product or service, according to apreset percentage of the profit margin of the product or servicespecified by advertisement promotion code 216, for example. For example,vendor/retailer 242 and/or manufacturer 244 may send a message toadvertising system/service 280 to store a credit or coupon forsmartphone user 260 and first potential purchaser 360. Again,advertising system/service 280 identifies smartphone user 260 and firstpotential purchaser 360 using advertiser codes 212 and 312,respectively.

FIGS. 2 and 3 are described with respect to an RFID tag 206. One skilledin the art will appreciate that a QR code and/or barcode associated witha product or service can equally be used to provide an advertising codethat provides a monetary incentive to communicate information about theproduct or service.

In contrast to QR codes or barcodes, RFID tags can be active devices. Inother words, they can constantly broadcast their information. Thisunique feature allows point of sale (POS) devices to tally the prices ofall of the items in a shopping cart almost instantaneously, for example.Depending on the distances over which RFID tags broadcast theirmessages, however, this active capability of the tags can cause problemswhen browsing products in close proximity to many other products.

In various embodiments, smartphone 202 includes a filtering mechanismthat allows smartphone user 260 to select the products or services he orshe is currently interested in. This allows smartphone 202 to onlynotify its user when selected products and services are nearby.Smartphone 202 can also block or not receive transmissions from the RFIDtags of products or services a smartphone user 260 has not selected.

In various embodiments, smartphone user 260 is offered a list ofavailable products or services that are nearby having RFID tags thatbroadcast messages. When smartphone user 260 deselects one or moreproducts or services using a user interface on smartphone 202, thisselection is stored in the smartphone's memory device. The next timesmartphone 202 receives messages from the one or more deselectedproducts or services, smartphone 202 will not show these messages tosmartphone user 260. Alternatively, smartphone 202 will show thesemessages in a different color or shade to smartphone user 260 untilsmartphone user 260 actively selects these messages to reactivatemessage alert functionalities.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary flowchart showing a method for communicatingproduct or service information to a potential purchaser, in accordancewith various embodiments.

In step 410, a smartphone of a first user scans a product or itemdescribing a product to obtain a product or service code that providesproduct or service information of a product or service.

In step 420, the product or service code is combined with informationfrom the smartphone associated with the product or service to generate adigital code.

In step 430, the digital code is communicated to a communication deviceof a second user that is the potential purchaser of the product orservice using a network.

In various embodiments, the scanning step 410 includes scanning a radiofrequency identification (RFID) tag.

In various embodiments, the scanning step 410 includes using a nearfield communication (NFC) interface on the smartphone to accessinformation on the product or service.

In various embodiments, the method 400 further includes filtering, usinga filtering mechanism, unselected products or services by the first userso that the first user is only notified when selected products orservices are nearby.

In various embodiments, the filtering step includes blockingtransmissions from RFID tags of products or services the first user hasnot selected.

In various embodiments, the method 400 further includes showing messagesfrom the unselected products or services in a different color or shadeuntil the first user actively selects the messages from the unselectedproducts or services.

In various embodiments, the scanning step 410 includes scanning abarcode or QR code.

In various embodiments, the method 400 further includes capturing aphoto or digital image of the product or service, using an imagingdevice on the smartphone.

In various embodiments, the information from the smartphone includes oneor more of the time the product or service was seen, the location of theproduct or service, and the digital image of the product or service.

In various embodiments, the communicating step 420 includes posting thedigital code on a social networking website.

In various embodiments, the communicating step 420 includes sending thedigital code using communication channels including one or more of anemail, voice, text, and chat.

In various embodiments, the product or service code provides the productor service information by including one or more universal resourcelocator (URL) links that provide the product or service information.

In various embodiments, the product or service code is a product code,and the product or service information includes one or more of a price,manufacturer, date of manufacture, technical information, marketinginformation, vendor information, vendor return policies, technicalsupport phone numbers and/or websites, vendor price comparisons, andcomparable products comparisons.

In various embodiments, the product or service code is a service codethat provides information on services available and includes one or moreof menu items of a restaurant, cost of the menu items, food preparationinformation, nutrition information for each item on the menu,reservation information, seating information, hours of operation, anddirections to the restaurant.

In various embodiments, the digital code further includes anadvertisement promotion code that describes an incentive forcommunicating information about the product or service, and one or moreadvertiser codes that identify one or more advertisers that forwardedthe information about the product or service to the potential purchaser.The first user is one of the one or more advertisers.

In various embodiments, the method 400 further includes communicatingthe digital code to a point of sale device or terminal using thecommunication device. The point of sale device receives the digital codefrom a purchaser that is the second user, decodes the digital code intothe product or service code, the advertisement promotion code, and theadvertiser codes, and compensates the one or more advertisers accordingto the incentive described in the advertisement promotion code, afterthe purchaser makes a purchase.

In various embodiments, the compensating step includes sending the oneor more advertisers one or more emails attaching one or more creditvouchers or coupons for future purchases.

In various embodiments, the compensating step includes storing a creditfor each of the one or more advertisers in a database of avendor/retailer or manufacturer for future purchases.

System

Referring again to FIGS. 2 and 3, a system for communicating product orservice information to a potential purchaser includes a smartphone of afirst user that scans a product or item describing a product to obtain aproduct or service code that provides product or service information ofa product or service. The smartphone combines the product or servicecode with information from the smartphone associated with the product orservice to generate a digital code. Further, the smartphone communicatesthe digital code to a communication device of a second user that is thepotential purchaser of the product or service using a network.

Computer Program Product

In various embodiments, a computer program product includes anon-transitory and tangible computer-readable storage medium whosecontents include a program with instructions being executed on aprocessor so as to perform a method for communicating product or serviceinformation to a potential purchaser. This method is performed by asystem that includes one or more distinct software modules.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a system 500 that includes one or moredistinct software modules that perform a method for communicatingproduct or service information to a potential purchaser, in accordancewith various embodiments. System 500 includes scanning module 510,combining module 520, and communication module 530.

In various embodiments, the scanning module 510 scans to obtain aproduct or service code that provides product or service information ofa product or service, using a smartphone of a first user.

In various embodiments, the combining module 520 combines the product orservice code with information from the smartphone associated with theproduct or service to generate a digital code.

In various embodiments, the communication module 530 communicates thedigital code to a communication device of a second user that is thepotential purchaser of the product or service using a network.

While the present teachings are described in conjunction with variousembodiments, it is not intended that the present teachings be limited tosuch embodiments. On the contrary, the present teachings encompassvarious alternatives, modifications, and equivalents, as will beappreciated by those of skill in the art.

Further, in describing various embodiments, the specification may havepresented a method and/or process as a particular sequence of steps.However, to the extent that the method or process does not rely on theparticular order of steps set forth herein, the method or process shouldnot be limited to the particular sequence of steps described. As one ofordinary skill in the art would appreciate, other sequences of steps maybe possible. Therefore, the particular order of the steps set forth inthe specification should not be construed as limitations on the claims.In addition, the claims directed to the method and/or process should notbe limited to the performance of their steps in the order written, andone skilled in the art can readily appreciate that the sequences may bevaried and still remain within the spirit and scope of the variousembodiments.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for communicating product or serviceinformation to a potential purchaser through one or more smartphones,comprising: downloading a first application from a server to a firstsmartphone of a first user, wherein the first application allows thefirst smartphone of the first user to scan a product or an itemdescribing a service to obtain both a product or service code thatprovides product or service information of a product or a service and anadvertisement promotion code provided by a vendor/retailer ormanufacturer of the product or service that provides a monetaryincentive for a first user to communicate information about the productor service, wherein the first application registers the first user witha first advertiser code that uniquely identifies the first user;generating a first barcode, using the first application, by combiningthe product or service code and the advertisement promotion code withinformation from the first smartphone associated with the product orservice and with the first advertiser code, wherein the product orservice code, the advertisement promotion code, the information from thefirst smartphone associated with the product or service, and the firstadvertiser code are encoded in the first barcode, using the firstsmartphone of the first user; and communicating the first barcode to asecond smartphone of a second user that is the potential purchaser ofthe product or service using a network, using the first application onthe first smartphone of the first user, wherein the second smartphone ofthe second user downloads a second application that registers the seconduser with a second advertiser code that uniquely identifies the seconduser, and, using the second application, encodes the first barcode andthe second advertiser code into a second barcode and sends the secondbarcode to a third smartphone of a third user that is a second potentialpurchaser of the product or service using the network, wherein when thethird smartphone of the third user is presented to a point of sale (POS)terminal, the POS terminal scans the second barcode, decodes the secondbarcode into the product or service code, the advertisement promotioncode, the information from the first smartphone associated with theproduct or service, the first advertiser code and the second advertisercode, and compensates the first user identified by the first advertisercode and compensates the second user by the second advertiser codeaccording to the incentive described in the advertisement promotioncode, after the third user purchases the product or service.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the scanning step comprises scanning a radiofrequency identification (RFID) tag.
 3. The method of claim 2, whereinthe scanning step further comprises using an near field communication(NFC) interface on the first smartphone to access information on theproduct or service.
 4. The method of claim 3, further comprisingfiltering, using a filtering mechanism, unselecting products or servicesby the first user so that the first user is only notified when selectedproducts or services are nearby.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein thefiltering step includes blocking transmissions from RFID tags ofproducts or services the first user has not selected.
 6. The method ofclaim 4, further comprising showing messages from the unselectedproducts or services in a different color or shade until the first useractively selects the messages from the unselected products or services.7. The method of claim 1, wherein the scanning step comprises scanning abarcode or QR code.
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprisingcapturing a photo or digital image of the product or service, using animaging device on the first smartphone.
 9. The method of claim 8,wherein the information from the first smartphone includes one or moreof the time the product or service was seen, the location of the productor service, and the digital image of the product or service.
 10. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the communicating step comprises posting thefirst barcode and the second barcode on a social networking website. 11.The method of claim 1, wherein the communicating step comprises sendingthe first barcode and the second barcode using communication channelsincluding one or more of an email, voice, text, and chat.
 12. The methodof claim 1, wherein the product or service code provides the product orservice information by including one or more universal resource locator(URL) links that provide the product or service information.
 13. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the product or service code is a productcode, and wherein the product or service information includes one ormore of a price, manufacturer, date of manufacture, technicalinformation, marketing information, vendor information, vendor returnpolicies, technical support phone numbers and/or websites, vendor pricecomparisons, and comparable products comparisons.
 14. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the product or service code is a service code thatprovides information on services available and includes one or more ofmenu items of a restaurant, cost of the menu items, food preparationinformation, nutrition information for each item on the menu,reservation information, seating information, hours of operation, anddirections to the restaurant.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein thecompensating step includes sending each of the first user and the seconduser an email attaching one or more credit vouchers or coupons forfuture purchases.
 16. The method of claim 1, wherein the compensatingstep includes storing a credit for each of the first user and the seconduser in a database of the vendor/retailer or manufacturer for futurepurchases.
 17. A system for communicating product or service informationto a potential purchaser through three or more smartphones, comprising:a first smartphone of a first user that downloads a first applicationfrom a server, wherein the first application allows the first smartphoneof the first user to scan a product or item describing a service aproduct to obtain both a product or service code that provides productor service information of a product or service and an advertisementpromotion code provided by a vendor/retailer or manufacturer of theproduct or service that provides a monetary incentive for a first userto communicate information about the product or service, generates afirst barcode, using the first application, by combining the product orservice code and the advertisement promotion code with information fromthe first smartphone associated with the product or service and with afirst advertiser code that uniquely identifies the first user, whereinthe product or service code, the advertisement promotion code, theinformation from the first smartphone associated with the product orservice, and the first advertiser code are encoded in the first barcode,communicates the first barcode to a second smartphone of a second userthat is the potential purchaser of the product or service using anetwork, using the first application on the first smartphone of thefirst user, where the second smartphone of the second user downloads asecond application that registers the second user with a secondadvertiser code that uniquely identifies the second user, and, using thesecond application, encodes the first barcode and the second advertisercode into a second barcode and sends the second barcode to a thirdsmartphone of a third user that is a second potential purchaser of theproduct or service using the network, wherein when the third smartphoneof the third user is presented to a point of sale (POS) terminal, thePOS terminal scans the second barcode on the third smartphone of thethird user, decodes the second barcode into the product or service code,the advertisement promotion code, the information from the firstsmartphone associated with the product or service, the first advertisercode and the second advertiser code, and compensates the first useridentified by the first advertiser code and compensates the second useridentified by the second advertiser code according to the incentivedescribed in the advertisement promotion code, after the third userpurchases the product or service.
 18. The system of claim 17, whereinthe compensating step includes storing a credit for each of the firstuser and the second user in a database of the vendor/retailer ormanufacturer for future purchases.
 19. An advertising system toproviding incentives and compensation to a users of three or moresmartphones to communicate product or service information to a potentialpurchaser, the method comprising: an advertising system computer serverthat generates a product or service code for identifying a product orservice and an advertisement promotion code that provides a provides amonetary incentive for a first user to communicate information about theproduct or service, sends the product or service code and theadvertisement promotion code to a vendor/retailer or manufacturer of theproduct or service that places the product or service code and theadvertisement promotion code in an RFID or a QR code on the product oran item describing the service, sends a first application to a firstsmartphone of a first user, wherein the first application that isdownloaded on the first smartphone registers the first user with a firstadvertiser code that uniquely identifies the first user, wherein thefirst user uses the first application that is downloaded on the firstsmartphone of the first user to scan the RFID or a QR code on theproduct or an item describing the service and wherein the firstsmartphone generates a first barcode, using the first application, bycombining the product or service code and the advertisement promotioncode with information from the first smartphone associated with theproduct or service and with the first advertiser code, wherein theproduct or service code, the advertisement promotion code, theinformation from the first smartphone associated with the product orservice, and the first advertiser code are encoded in the barcode, andcommunicates the first barcode to a second smartphone of a second userthat is the potential purchaser of the product or service using anetwork, using the first application on the first smartphone of thefirst user, wherein the second smartphone of the second user downloads asecond application that registers the second user with a secondadvertiser code that uniquely identifies the second user, and, using thesecond application, encodes the first barcode and the second advertisercode into a second barcode and sends the second barcode to a thirdsmartphone of a third user that is a second potential purchase of theproduct or service using the network, wherein when the third smartphoneof the third user is presented to a point of sale (POS) terminal and thePOS terminal scans the second barcode on the third smartphone of thethird user and decodes the second barcode into the product or servicecode, the advertisement promotion code, the information from the firstsmartphone associated with the product or service, the first advertisercode and the second advertiser code, after the third user purchases theproduct or service, receives the product or service code, theadvertisement promotion code, the first advertiser code, and the secondadvertiser code from a point of sale terminal, and compensates the firstuser identified by the first advertiser code and compensates the seconduser identified by the second advertiser code according to the incentivedescribed in the advertisement promotion code for the third user'spurchase of the product or service identified by the product or servicecode.
 20. The system of claim 19, wherein the compensating step includessending each of the first user and the second user an email attachingone or more credit vouchers or coupons for future purchases.